iHotel/Conference Center Complex - UIUC Research Park

Fox Development / Atkins Group

Urbana, Illinois

The project involved the design and construction of a 126-room hotel and Conference Center. The 68,000-square-foot, five-story hotel was constructed and furnished consistent with AAA Four-Diamond Rating quality standards. The upscale hotel includes conversational groupings in the lobby, a fitness room, Starbuck’s kiosk, and luxury suites on its top floor.

The Hotel complex is connected to the 38,000-square-foot Conference Center, which will include a 7,000-square-foot divisible meeting room, pre-function area, breakout rooms, a boardroom, a business center, public restrooms, and storage/support areas. The Conference Center is owned and operated by the University of Illinois.

The Hotel and Conference Center complex also includes a 7,500-squarefoot, full-service Houlihan’s restaurant in addition to a banquet prep kitchen. The restaurant will provide seating for 245 patrons with private dining areas and an outdoor deck. The banquet prep kitchen serves as staging space for catering to the Conference Center.

The $15 million hotel and $11.25 million Conference Center is situated on the corner of St. Mary’s Road and First Street, across from the University of Illinois Assembly Hall near the Research Park on the Urbana campus.

Henneman was responsible for all mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection design, and project administration for both the Hotel and Conference Center, as well as the structural engineering for the Hotel. The Hotel design incorporated a negotiated construction contract developed with design build techniques that focused on collaborative design efforts between the engineers and contractors.